Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Tuesday ordered officials to determine the precise Soviet death toll in World War II as the nation marked the 65th anniversary of the battle that broke the Nazi siege of Leningrad.
Russia, which suffered hugely in the conflict it calls the Great Patriotic War, places substantial importance on commemorating its sacrifices.
An estimated 27 million Soviet civilians and soldiers died in the war.
Much of the western part of the country was ravaged during four years of epic battles.
"Data about our losses haven't been revealed yet," Medvedev said at a meeting with officials and veterans in the Konstantin Palace near St. Petersburg.
"We must determine the historical truth."Medvedev said that a special panel involving officials from various government agencies will be created for the purpose.
He said that more than 2.4 million people are still officially considered missing in action.
Of the 9.5 million buried in mass graves, 6 million are unidentified, he said.
The meeting marked the anniversary of the battle that broke the siege of Leningrad on January 27, 1944.
The siege killed an estimated 1.5 million people.
Medvedev also used the occasion to condemn what he described as efforts to rehabilitate Nazis in some neighboring nations.
He didn't identify any specific nation, but Russia in the past has harshly criticized authorities in the ex-Soviet Baltic nations of Estonia and Latvia for allowing gatherings of local veterans of Nazi SS units.
"We must toughen our stance on the issue," Medvedev said.
"There is no room here for delicate diplomatic wording. Our stance must be more combative."
He also urged the government to provide free apartments to some 50,000 war veterans before Russia marks the 65th anniversary of the end of the fighting in Europe next year.
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